Ebola outbreak in DRC

New Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo

ISIRO, Democratic Republic of Congo |
August 22, 2012

A new outbreak of the Ebola virus has been reported in Africa, this time in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

At least 10 people are reported to have died of the disease in Orientale province in eastern Congo, CNN reported. Two cases of the disease have been confirmed and 13 are suspected.

Orientale borders the area in Uganda where 16 deaths have been attributed to the disease since July 1. But Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the World Health Organization, said the regions are separated by dense forest without good roads and different strains of the virus are involved.

Ebola, first reported in 1976, spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. Since the symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting and bleeding, medical workers are vulnerable to infection, and the disease has killed three in the DRC.

Hartl said increased monitoring for Ebola in countries neighboring Uganda might be responsible for the discovery of the DRC outbreak.